Cat Burrito

When I was at school, a lot of the girls could name John Taylor from Duran Duran. Likewise, Gary Tibbs from Adam & the Ants. And a few could name Craig Logan from Bros. I'm not sure that this would be the case now but it was at the time.

We played an intimate acoustic set, mostly on two mandocellos last night in Old Town, Swindon. We supported Canute's Plastic Army who were both talented and very personable. Lots of peop!e came who had seen us before at Swindon Shuffle last year. I am 5 1/2 months alcohol free now and I think it was a strong contender for my personal favourite show of 2024.

I don't have a fancy poster but this is my social media meme for Deadlight Dance supporting Canute's Plastic Army at The Tuppenny in Old Town, Swindon in 7 days time.

I've never done this but it turned out that my ex-wife did for me! 🙈 I think doing so would cure a lot of GAS.

I think there is a overly romanticised view of drugs when it comes to rock 'n' roll. Over the years I have worked with a handful of drug users and they are generally a pain in the **** - not as creative as they think they are and pretty unreliable. In the 90s, we had a guitarist who was permanently smoking weed ("only weed") and he'd have to give me his money to cover rehearsals at the start of the month or he'd spend it on weed. We'd then get to middle to later in the month and he'd be calling me up asking for a loan. Every month it was the same, we'd debate it for an hour with me reminding him of what happens every time, only for history to repeat - he'd then get angry with me when I asked for it back "it was just a fiver, not a tenner", only to eventually remember that I wasn't a liar and it was as I had written it down. Unsurprisingly, I don't miss that! These days I work with a few musicians who have issues around alcohol and I have to say it is the same. Some really talented players junking 1/2 a day of recording because they listen to the play back. I find it staggering when good musicians practice all the time and then when they go out, they blow it for themselves. I hasten to add most musicians I work with these days are focussed and creative. Have a pint, smoke a spliff (if you have to) but just keep your act together!

I stopped playing for 4 years at the age of 27yrs old because I thought I was too old. It sounds crazy now but a lot of us did back then. I do think things change with age. I have enjoyed playing more since I started again and the last 20yrs of band life have been incredible. I am starting to feel I am too old to be going up and down the country for one off gigs with a band that I am not wild about. I didn't feel like that 5yrs back.

I'd like to say yes but it was probably more like The Count from Sesame Street teaming up with the Banana Splits!?! This version is great, very 70s soul.

Having had a time out for Nick's (other half) wife's (again, other half) 50th, my little Gothic duo have finally returned. I spent the time off getting reacquainted with my upright bass. We did two hours of 80s alternative / gothic songs, peppered with a few originals from our forthcoming EP and debut album. I was bass guitar free so played mandocello, mandolin, guitar on two, upright bass on five and sang. And I bet this doesn't get typed too often but Sisters of Mercy "This Corrosion" on upright bass? Yeah, we went there! The attendance was a little lighter than our regular shows but hands down, I thought it was the best we had ever played in this format.

Last night I was up in Nottingham at Billy Bootleggers for an all dayer festival with my rocky 3 piece. I felt a bit uncomfortable at first as I was never much of a heavy metal guy. I got chatting to some young police officer outside because she thought the cool 50s American car outside might be mine. I said it wasn’t and neglected to offer a look at my Peugeot 107 which was just around the corner. I decided after the shambolic sound of the last show I would channel my inner Johnny Thunders / Lords of the New Church and just go for it! Best gig I think the band has done - loud, sweaty and I felt we meant it. I have one more show with them this year and will be free to focus on my goth duo for this year 🎉🖤

He’s been with me 17 1/2yrs. On a darker note, I wanted him in the video whilst he was still around. On a lighter note, he actually provided vocals on track 5 of the EP.

I've shared a few of these over the last couple of years and been humbled by many of the nice comments you have made. My duo "Deadlight Dance" is essentially two old friends who met in Sixth Form in 1989 and wound up in a fun but (if I am being honest) slightly dodgy Sixth Form Goth band. Fast forward to lockdown / Covid and we decided to have another stab at things. We are two weeks shy of releasing a 5 track EP (streaming free everywhere, so I'm not asking for your money!) via Ray Records. The EP has a running theme of characters from books (Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and Orwell, for example). We really mixed up the instrumentation this time so there is only conventional bass guitar on two tracks - this one is bass vi. "Montag" is the conflicted fireman from Ray Bradbury's "Fahrenheit 451", which is what inspired this track. The guest star around 1 minute 55 seconds might make a few of you smile. Anyway, have a look. Whilst I'm not asking for cash (there is a Bandcamp page, in case anyone is worried I'm skipping meals though!), I'm more than happy to put this out for likes, subscribers and shares! 🙏😺

The next show for my little duo that I have with my friend. We called it "The Next Chapter" simply because we are about to release an EP called "Chapter & Verse", inspired by characters from books we like.

I can't recall if I ever mentioned it but back in the 80s, I was in a short lived school band called Nine Lives. My profile picture is the cartoon version of me circa 1989. It's a great name and I'm surprised it hasn't been more widely used.

I'd always been a bass player but started working with a singer-songwriter around 2005. I felt guilty just adding bass to his recordings so bought a mandolin (I figured the strings were set up similarly) and started to add a whole range of instruments I couldn't play, from 4 string banjo to lapsteel. Upon reflection, I bit off more than I could chew. At this time I started playing guitar more seriously and actually went for lessons with the instruction "make me not sound like a bass player when I play guitar". They achieved that and I had a couple of occasions where I have played guitar in bands with varying success. Over lockdown I got much, much better on mandolin and I have now added mandocello to my list of instruments. Just recently I have been learning simple drum and keyboard lines. My next release is a 5 track EP and I only play standard bass guitar on 2 of the songs. Looking back, I think I tried to run before I could walk but fast forward to 2024 and I am definitely a better musician and better on the bass as a result. I'd still say bass is my go to instrument and the one that feels effortless but I have a lot of fun with the other stuff.

Yes and yes. Noel first saw it back when he was a roadie for Inspiral Carpets.

Respect to the Swindon Advertiser who have demanded that Oasis come to Swindon because the town inspired the name. I expect the management will be kicking themselves at such an obvious oversight!?! Swindon's finest music journalism since they briefly ran an online story saying the Motorhead gig in Swindon wasn't cancelled just because the band had lost the bass player! (yes, true story)

Witton Albion Football Club

Not my favourite show… at all. A gig at a festival in Northwich. I rented possibly the worst hotel en route (didn’t spot the shared bathroom bit and there wasn’t even a curtain over the window of my room!). I contemplated sleeping in the car but pressed on to the show after a mixed night’s sleep. Just a line check, which was fine, but when we came on, someone had knocked my bass and the A string was significantly out. I tried tuning it but it was difficult to do discreetly. Sorted it out and then it sounded like the house cab had blown. The sound engineer just kinda left me hanging. Upon reflection, I think my wireless was the issue letting me down. Annoyed at myself for not overcoming the issue. I tried to put on a good show (& the audience said it sounded fine out front) but I think if you knew, you knew. I’ll be more on it in future but yeah, not my favourite set. I got sent a couple of nice pictures which I am sure would look nice on my mother in law’s mantelpiece!?!

I had the AD200B running through an OBC410 and it was hands down the best sound I ever had. However, the weight was quite something so I sold it on after a few years. I had the OBC115 too which didn't sound quite as good. I was pairing the 115 with the 410 but invariably the 410 sounded punchier on its own. I may have a few YouTube clips but as they tend to be shaky live footage from phones at gigs, you are probably better looking up some of the demos on YouTube that are recorded properly.

I've just checked it and it's fine for me with both pages displaying different content.

I don't believe we have had many refinishers on here, over the years. It's a slow task so it is expensive. A few years ago, on the advice of my local guitar repair shop, I did two of my old Fender basses. I had good results but there were one or two people on here who said there were better ways to do it. He advised I get some Nitro Mors and remove the finish that way. I spent a couple of days in the garden doing it but it got it back to the wood and then I used wax to make the wood look nice - so a natural wood finish. Upon reflection, I wish I had used a wood dye but the Nitro Mors did the job, in a very chemically kind of way. Obviously, I removed the body and sanded it down once the Nitro Mors had done the job.

It depends on the band and the people involved. I used to run all my bands when I was younger and it got to be a pain. Bandmates got ahead in life with better jobs, on the housing ladder earlier and generally getting on with life. All the while, I was mailing out tapes and spending my life on the phone. I also found my band time was admin, not practicing my craft. In recent years, I have mainly played in other people's bands. I don't get final say but I have time to practice and do other things. I currently run a duo and because we are very old mates, we've yet to disagree on anything. I don't think I could run a 4 piece or more as there are too many schedules to juggle. I think the old adage is, if it's not fun, don't do it. Having been playing since the 80s, I have found a way of better managing my time so I am not *just* doing the business side of the band. I have noticed that when I run things, I am very keen to consult and communicate. I have worked with a handful of dictators and it definitely sets up a band vs the player manager atmosphere.

I definitely sympathise with the original post. Musicians are a notoriously flaky bunch but it's also give and take. When I was on tour recently, it was my drummer who had a speakon to jack adapter for me to link my head to house cabs. Generally, it it keeps happening, you need to take some ownership for the gear you bring out. I came off the tour and bought one. The hands down worst experience I ever had was playing in Camden about 10yrs back and the bassist from the other band's bass died mid set. I didn't know the guy but lent him my bass so they could finish the gig. Afterwards, he gave me a running criticism of everything that was wrong with my bass! He was "normally a guitarist, you see"... He did start to backtrack massively when I said that next time I would leave them hanging as I wouldn't want to put them through the ordeal again. Typical indie poser! Thankfully, my current main project, we have loads of fun swapping instruments and are very fair with each other. I am far too along to be wasting my time with idiots in the band.

I was never happy with my nails but in recent years I started using a pick with bass. I was getting some pains in there (age related) and a lot of the music I like suits that style. I know a few people get sniffy about bass with a pick but locally I have quite a good reputation so I don't mind what a few online trolls think. Otherwise, you are forever balancing the need for different nail lengths for different instruments. There seemed to be about one day in every cutting cycle where they were about right for bass and other instruments. Normally it was too long or short for something all the time.

I went there 33 years ago (gulp!) back when it was more like Scumbag college. I didn't do music (didn't really do anything, I say with no pride) but I lived with a couple of music students. It's really upped it's game in recent years and I know Julianne from All About Eve was lecturing music there for years. Certainly a headphones amp for practice, as a minimum but I'd ask them.